Open Recommendations

Require periodic reviews of all succession planning elements to foster continuous improvement.

Identify and manage ongoing relationships with recruiting and outreach sources.

Identify the CPSC-specific skill and competency gaps and establish a process to close those gaps.

Implement steps to address the federal government-wide priorities identified in the Federal Workforce Priorities Report.

Develop initiatives through Strategic Workforce Plans.

Develop and implement an annual assessment and review process of the Mission Critical Occupations plan.

Develop and implement a process to report turnover data by office to senior agency management at least annually. This process should include feedback between EXRM, senior agency management, and staff in the affected offices.

Review policy and programs that directly relate to recruitment and retention such as: retention bonuses, flexible pay bands for hard-to-fill positions, career ladder positions, cross-training, easier hiring processes, and other flexibilities at HR’s disposal to recruit and retain qualified employees.

Publish formal policies and procedures governing performance management within the CPSC.

Create and distribute a survey to all employees regarding employee satisfaction with work life balance initiatives and publish the results. Repeat this process at least annually.

Present and implement a plan to address employee concerns voiced in the survey.

At the end of each EXRM-provided training, provide employees with the option to provide feedback on the utility of each training provided.

Create and distribute a survey to all employees regarding effectiveness and employee satisfaction with the employee awards program and each office’s bonus pool and publish the results. Repeat this process biennially.

Create and distribute a survey to all employees regarding satisfaction with EXRM services, at least annually.

Present and implement a plan to address employee concerns after each survey.

Develop performance management measures for each job series using a 360-feedback mechanism and appropriate data to set targets to drive improvement.

Develop and implement HC assessment policies that align with OPM regulations and guidelines to include:• how the CPSC evaluates its HR practices• roles and responsibilities regarding required assessments• allocation of available resources to support and implement assessments• milestones and measures used to determine success in assessments.

Utilize all available data sources in a targeted, data-driven manner to assess HC programs effectiveness and success. Follow-up on the results of assessments via formal written reports and hold personnel accountable to ensure the findings do not continue to occur in the future.

Develop and implement a plan to align the assessment program outcomes to HCOP goals and initiatives, at least annually, to include a review of any corrective actions taken to resolve prior year issues. Report the results to agency senior management.

Develop a guide for evaluating the CPSC’s implementation of its HCF against best practices. This guide should include the following topics: technology solutions, resources, talent management, diversity of thought, risks, and collaborative efforts to improve operating efficiencies.

Complete annual self-audits as required by OPM guidance.

Initiate a communication plan and distribute this plan across the CPSC to all appropriate stakeholders. The plan should establish formal communication strategies with all appropriate agency stakeholders (messages, briefings, briefing notes, policies etc.).

Measure the effectiveness of the communication plan through surveys, website traffic, community of practice involvement, cross-agency initiatives, training, and other internal communications.

Provide EXRM staff with appropriate training and resources to completemandated annual self-assessments.

We recommend the FEMA Administrator ensure that the EFSP National Board resolve the $7.4 million in questioned costs and incorporate controls in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 Humanitarian Relief Funding and Application Guidance to minimize future reimbursements of unsupported costs. Additionally, the FEMA Administrator should ensure the labor hour reimbursements made to the COVID-19 testing contractor are appropriately supported.